Visiting Singapore, Coordinating Minister For Airlangga Appreciates PM Lee Hsien Loong Sending RI Oxygen And Ventilator

JAKARTA - Coordinating Minister for the Economy Airlangga Hartarto expressed his appreciation to Singapore's Prime Minister (PM) Lee Hsien Loong for the medical support and assistance provided to Indonesia following the surge in domestic COVID-19 cases.

This was conveyed by Airlangga during a two-day working visit to Singapore from July 13 to July 14, 2021.

"Thanks to Singapore, in particular Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong for sending ventilators and oxygen to Indonesia," he said in a press statement as reported by the official website, Tuesday, July 13.

According to Airlangga, Singapore is one of Indonesia's main economic partners in investment and trade. Therefore, concrete humanitarian steps between the two countries are considered to be able to further strengthen the bonds of friendship that have been established so far.

"A number of Singaporean investments that have been carried out in Indonesia show the close cooperation that has been very well established between the two countries," he said.

Meanwhile, Airlangga's working visit abroad this time aims to lead the Sixth Ministerial Meeting of the Singapore-Indonesia Bilateral Working Group with Singapore's Minister of Trade and Industry, Gan Kim Yong.

"The focus of the discussion in this meeting is related to the development of bilateral cooperation in the economic field between the two countries related to investment, transportation, tourism, the development of the Batam-Bintan-Karimun Region and other Special Economic Zones, labor and agribusiness," he explained.

According to the plan, a number of important bilateral issues will be discussed in the series of bilateral meetings, including in the fields of investment and trade, the preparation of the Leaders' Retreat of the two countries, the preparation of the G20 Presidency in 2022, the chairmanship of Indonesia in ASEAN in 2023 and the development of economic management during the pandemic.

Just so you know, in the first quarter of this year, foreign direct investment (FDI) from Singapore reached US$2.6 billion spread over 3,634 projects. The trade value between the two countries was recorded at 20.47 billion US dollars in 2020 and reached 10.97 billion US dollars since the beginning of the 2021 period to May this year.

As previously reported, last week the friendly country in ASEAN sent medical equipment assistance consisting of 200 ventilators, 756 oxygen cylinders, 600 oxygen concentrators and various PPE needs.